Dark Blue World (2001)

The friendship of two men becomes tested when they both fall for the same woman.

Director:

Jan Sverák

Writers:

Zdenek Sverák (story), Zdenek Sverák (screenplay)

Stars:

Ondrej Vetchý, Krystof Hádek, Tara Fitzgerald

8 wins & 7 nominations.

Cast

Cast overview, first billed only:
Ondrej Vetchý	...	Frantisek Sláma
Krystof Hádek	...	Karel Vojtisek
Tara Fitzgerald	...	Susan Whitmore
Charles Dance	...	Wing Commander Bentley
Oldrich Kaiser	...	Jan Machatý
David Novotný	...	Bedrich Mrtvý
Linda Rybová	...	Hanicka Pecharova
Jaromír Dulava	...	Railwayman Kanka
Lukás Kantor	...	Tom Tom
Radim Fiala	...	Jura Sysel
Juraj Bernáth	...	Jan Gregora
Miroslav Táborský	...	Vilha Houf
Hans-Jörg Assmann	...	Doctor Blaschke
Thure Riefenstein	...	German Officer Hesse
Anna Massey	...	English Teacher

Storyline

March 15, 1939: Germany invades Czechoslovakia. Czech and Slovak pilots flee to England, joining the RAF. After the war, back home, they are put in labor camps, suspected of anti-Communist ideas. This film cuts between a post-war camp where Franta is a prisoner and England during the war, where Franta is like a big brother to Karel, a very young pilot. On maneuvers, Karel crash lands by the rural home of Susan, an English woman whose husband is MIA. She spends one night with Karel, and he thinks he's found the love of his life. It's complicated by Susan's attraction to Franta. How will the three handle innocence, Eros, friendship, and the heat of battle? When war ends, what then?

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Plot Keywords:

raf | czech abroad | allies | luftwaffe | nazi germany | 

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Genres:

War | Drama | Action | Romance

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Motion Picture Rating (MPAA)

Rated R for sexuality/nudity

Details

Official Sites:

Official site Tmavomodrý svìt (czech) [Czech Republic]

Country:

Czech Republic UK Germany Denmark Italy France

Language:

Czech German English Slovak

Release Date:

17 May 2001 (Czech Republic)

Also Known As:

Dark Blue World

Filming Locations:

Czech Republic

Box Office

Budget:

$5,000,000 (estimated)

Opening Weekend USA:

$19,541, 30 December 2001, Limited Release

Gross USA:

$258,215, 2 June 2002

Company Credits

Production Co:

Biograf Jan Sverak, Ceská Televize, Dark Blue World

Technical Specs

Runtime:

112 min

Sound Mix:

Dolby Digital EX

Color:

Color

Aspect Ratio:

2.35 : 1

Did You Know?

Trivia

Czech Republic's official submission to 74th Academy Award's Foreign Language in 2002.

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Goofs

When Susan is explaining to Karel that her husband is serving in the Royal Navy but has been missing at sea for a year, the ship below his photograph is an American Iowa class battleship. The first ship of this class (USS Iowa, BB-61) was not commissioned until February of 1943, long after the period of the film.

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Quotes

Vojtisek: What is your name?
Jane: Jane.
Vojtisek: My name is Charles. Would you be so kind to show me which way is the officer's mess?
Other WAAF girl: Oh, you cant probably leave while on stand by, can you?
Vojtisek: [pointing on Jane's cup] Your tea is well.
Jane: Good.
Vojtisek: My English is good?
Jane: The tea is good.
Vojtisek: Ah... wrong again... I would need
[in Czech]
[...]

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Connections

Referenced in DVTV: Krystof Hádek (2015)

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Soundtracks

If I Have It My Way

User Reviews

Brief overview and opinion

What a movie! It is worth watching just for the images of Spitfires flying low over the verdant hills of England, but moreso for the marvellous story of a man who loses everything for his beliefs. From the outset you can identify with the characters as they live life to the full, love and laugh, and then watch it all taken away from them by the Nazi invasion of their homeland. Their frustrations as the British insist upon continued training while they feel they are ready for battle from the outset becomes obvious. When they finally do go into battle their numbers are gradually reduced and their relationships become strained, not only due to the pressures of war but also to jealousies that come to the fore over a woman that none of them can ever have. When the war is finally over the hero makes it home to find everything has changed forever. His friends have all been lost, his girl married and even his dog taken from him. The ironic theme of the movie is that it is told from the perspective of a political prisoner who has lost it all by simply doing what everyone thought was right. The way the Nazi doctor proclaims his righteousness to the downtrodden Czech is a classical piece of perverted hypocrisy. A must see movie, not only about flying and adventure, but also about the indomitable human spirit.